A. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to sensor packages, and more particularly, to high-pressure sensor packages.
B. Description of Related Art
Solid-state pressure sensors, such as solid-state gas or fluid pressure sensors, generally require a hermetically sealed package, i.e., fully sealed package, in order to accurately detect a pressure. Typical solid-state pressure sensors have conductive pins extending from a sensing die of the pressure sensor package through relatively large holes of the package. In addition, typical pressure sensors may have cylindrical glass headers to provide a seal within the holes of the package and the conductive pins. However, glass headers may not withstand high temperatures. For example, exposure to high temperatures may cause the metal packaging material of the pressure sensor to expand, and therefore weaken or destroy a glass-to-metal seal that was initially intact. As a result, the pressure sensor may not be able to detect an applied pressure as desired. Also, in some instances, a glass-to-metal seal can degrade over time, which may weaken or destroy the glass-to-metal seal.
In addition, a pressure sensor may be exposed to extreme pressures. Existing sensors that have glass-to-metal seals may not endure high pressures because the glass-to-metal seals may crack and fail due to high pressure exposure. For example, typical glass-to-metal seals expose a large surface area of the seal to the applied pressure. The exposure of the large surface area of the glass-to-metal seal allows the glass headers to be pushed out of the housing of the pressure sensor due to a large force from the applied pressure. As a result, the conductive pins may become disconnected from the pressure sensor and the pressure sensor may not operate correctly, if at all.
Thus, it is desirable to provide a device for detecting pressure that can withstand exposure to high pressures and high temperatures to improve precision and accuracy of a pressure sensor.